Should You Be Worried? | The Weekend Warrior
How Excited Should Fan Bases Be For Their Future Based on Their Past?
The order is set, the guesswork is somewhat over, and now we can all be excited. Or can we? Some teams in the draft are where there are because of systemic issues—a cultural mindset, if you will. It seems easy to judge them based on ineptitude, stubbornness, and everything in between. Meanwhile, certain teams are praised for how seriously they take the draft; they take players contrary to where the consensus would select them, or they just have a knack for developing a particular archetype.
Regardless of whether or not your team (if you are a fan of a team) falls within that spectrum, the draft can bring up certain emotions based on what history has shown us. With the draft order set, let’s take a stroll down memory lane. We’ll take a look at how teams drafting picks 1-30 have done historically. In other words, we’ll look at the times the Orlando Magic have drafted with the first pick every time they’ve had it while also dissecting how the Memphis Grizzlies have done with the 22nd pick—dating back to 1980. Some teams have adopted some draft history based on franchise relocation, some teams traded their picks, and some teams have not historically drafted where they are slotted currently. Without further ado, let’s dive in.
#1. Orlando Magic
(2004)- Dwight Howard
(1993)- Chris Webber
(1992)- Shaquille O’Neal
#2. Oklahoma City Thunder
(2007)- Kevin Durant
#3. Houston Rockets
(1983)- Rodney McCray
#4. Sacramento Kings
(2009)- Tyreke Evans
#5. Detroit Pistons
N/A: Good Luck!
#6. Indiana Pacers
N/A: Good Luck!
#7. Portland Trail Blazers
N/A: Good Luck!
#8. New Orleans Pelicans
N/A: Good Luck!
#9. San Antonio Spurs
N/A: Good Luck!
#10. Washington Wizards
(2003)- Jarvis Hayes
(1983)- Jeff Malone
#11. New York Knicks
N/A: Good Luck!
#12. Oklahoma City Thunder
(2013)- Steven Adams
(2004)- Robert Swift
(2003)- Nick Collison
(2001)- Vladimir Radmanovic
#13. Charlotte Hornets
(2005)- Sean May
(1996)- Kobe Bryant
#14. Cleveland Cavaliers
N/A: Good Luck!
#15. Charlotte Hornets
N/A: Good Luck!
#16. Atlanta Hawks
(1995)- Alan Henderson
#17. Houston Rockets
N/A: Good Luck!
#18. Chicago Bulls
(1989)- BJ Armstrong
#19. Minnesota Timberwolves
N/A: Good Luck!
#20. San Antonio Spurs
(2010)- James Anderson
#21. Denver Nuggets
N/A: Good Luck!
#22. Memphis Grizzlies
(2014)- Jordan Adams
(1996)- Roy Rogers
#23. Brooklyn Nets (Brooklyn can defer to Philadelphia)
(2006)- Josh Boone
#24. Milwaukee Bucks
(2020)- RJ Hampton
#25. San Antonio Spurs
N/A: Good Luck!
#26. Dallas Mavericks
(2011)- Jordan Hamilton
(1987)- Steve Alford
#27. Miami Heat
(2012)- Arnett Moultrie
#28. Golden State Warriors
(2019)- Jordan Poole
(2018)- Jacob Evans
(1990)- Les Jepsen
#29. Memphis Grizzlies
N/A: Good Luck!
#30. Oklahoma City Thunder
(1986)- Nate McMillan